Having to click through a gauntlet of screens to cancel recurring subscriptions. Being told you are foolish if you decline a service. Discovering you were charged extra fees that were not clearly brought to your attention earlier. Finding it hard or confusing to configure your privacy settings to high. These and similar experiences arise when you encounter “dark patterns”, a term that US authorities are increasingly using to refer to interface design strategies that manipulate users into making choices they likely wouldn’t have otherwise made and that may cause harm.
On 9 January 2023, Canada announced further amendments to the Special Economic Measures (Iran) Regulations in response to those who “systematically violate human rights and spread the Iranian regime’s propaganda and misinformation.” These amendments list an additional two individuals and three entities under Schedule 1 of the Regulations and entered into force on 6 January 2023. Unlike past announcements, the government’s News Release provides particulars describing each newly designated individual and entity.
On 10 January 2023, Canada enacted the Special Economic Measures (Sri Lanka) Regulations in response to former state officials responsible for committing “gross and systemic violations of human rights.” The Regulations entered into force on 6 January 2023 and list four individuals on Schedule 1, including former Presidents Gotabaya Pajapaksa and Mahinda Rajapaksa.
On 5 January 2023, the Federal Trade Commission voted 3-1 to propose a new rule that would significantly restrict the use of non-compete clauses between employers and employees. The FTC’s proposed rule represents the FTC’s first foray into Section 5 competition rulemaking under Chair Lina Khan. The proposed rule follows a set of enforcement actions taken by the FTC against non-compete covenants in certain employer contracts.
Baker McKenzie’s Sanctions Blog published the alert titled OFAC Publishes Preliminary Guidance on Implementing the Price Cap Policy for Petroleum Products of Russian Origin on 6 January 2023. Read the article via the link here. Please also visit our Sanctions Blog for the most recent updates.
President Joe Biden’s omnibus spending package included three pieces of new antitrust legislation: (1) the Merger Filing Fee Modernization Act; (2) the State Antitrust Enforcement Venue Act; and (3) the Foreign Merger Subsidy Disclosure Act. The Merger Filing Fee Modernization Act will alter filing fees for transactions requiring antitrust review under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act. The new fee structure will reduce filing fees for smaller transactions, while significantly increasing fees for the largest ones.
Many digital advertising arrangements that companies commonly use may qualify as “selling” or “sharing for cross context behavioral advertising” personal information under the California Consumer Privacy Act in California and laws in a few other US states (Nevada, Virginia, Colorado, Connecticut, Utah). Businesses state in their online privacy disclosures whether they sold or shared personal information in the last 12 months and whether they will sell or share personal information. Businesses that “sell” or “share” personal information, or use or disclose consumers’ sensitive personal information for non-exempt purposes have to treat user-enabled global privacy controls as a valid opt-out request.
On 16 December 2022, the US Department of State’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls issued a proposed rule that would treat two additional types of transactions as activities that are not exports, reexports, retransfers, or temporary imports (“controlled events”) (and, thus, not require authorization) under the International Traffic in Arms Regulations.
US agencies such as the SEC, the CFTC and the FTC have extensive enforcement powers to seek significant financial penalties and limit or otherwise affect conduct through court injunctions or administrative orders. Companies and executives under investigation and threatened with enforcement actions by these agencies often choose to settle rather than litigate. Historically, from as cost-benefit analysis, settlement is preferable to the cost of litigation and the long term risks of extensive fights with agencies that would continue to be their regulators.
On 20 December 2022, Canada announced amendments to the Special Economic Measures (Haiti) Regulations in response to the “acts of significant corruption that are fueling the crisis” in Haiti. These amendments list an additional two individuals under the Schedule of the Regulations and took effect on 15 December 2022.